01 December 2011

i triumph at last

detail

Hello friends!

Do you remember, back in the sunny days of August when I shared some dappled light falling on a large blue painting I was working on for a friend? Well, I had pretty much finished the work when she returned to California after months of being away. I went to her home, saw again where the painting would hang, and realized that the painting was just way too blue. And way too white. Somehow, it was just not the right palette.

"No!" you're thinking, "So what did you do?!"

Well, I started painting over it. I realized her house had a lot of gold in it and I would have to make something richer and warmer.

I confess that the canvas went through some horrible stages. Being so large, it loomed in my living room, a silent eyesore. At times I thought it might defeat me but ... I persisted. (And I did not take any photos of its dreadful transition).

But at last! I finally finished it the other weekend. It's the first one I've done just using a palette knife to apply the paint. Here it is, propped temporarily in my dining room until I can deliver it:

Depending on the light, or where one stands, the elements and colors reflect and combine quite differently. I've never had that experience with a painting before, but I believe it's because I used several iridescent paints and because there's so much texture.

I may have this one at our show tomorrow. Hope you Bay Area folk can come by to see it!

Thank you, Anika, Jeannine and Yuuco! I brought this painting to our Claymates show/sale (just to display) and had another person wish to buy it. It's especially rewarding to have such good response after wrestling with this piece for so long. Thanks again!